I ask cos I bought a suit at Reiss on Saturday, and their instore service was great, very attentive, and overall excellent. I wanted to have it tailored a little as you do, and so I agreed to pick it up today.

They then called me today to say it was ready as promised, so I went into Oxford Street after work to get it.

They checked it in store and said it was all done etc but as soon as I got home I noticed some or possibly none of the alterations I'd paid for (paid £50 for no less) had been done.

I rang to raise this and they were fairly glib, don't really remember an apology being offered, just an offer for me to come in again and they'd get it done.

Presumably they think it's grand that I now would have to call in twice, after work tomorrow to drop it in, and again the next night.

How harsh are you Fashion Beaners in situations like this? I like the suit but I think I will simply ask for a full refund tomorrow, it's just not good enough in my view.

03-04-2012, 11:08 PM

_Ben_

I generally find it best to remain nice, but nice to the point where they don't think you're a pushover. I hear friends say they won't shop in X place again or buy Y product because they received bad service, and I always think this rather petty. One store isn't a reflection of a brand.

With your case I can see why you'd be angry, but a full refund? If I were you I'd try and act as though I could see the problem I'm causing, but at the same time level with them the fact that it was shoddy service on their part. You never know, they might refund the alteration costs: IMHO they should do this. At the end of the day, if they make the alterations and the suit is lovely, you might regret the refund. (unless of course you mean that they refund the costs and you keep the suit?).

03-04-2012, 11:19 PM

RMKF

I just sort of feel they don't deserve the custom. It's one thing making the mistake, but it wasn't really acknowledged in the right way when I phoned either.

It's true I might regret it, it's a good suit, I guess I even thought if I did regret it after shopping around I could swallow my pride and buy the same suit from a different Reiss!

You know I'd generally agree with you that it's petty to hold a grudge on something like this, I think a gesture on their part and I prob would reconsider.

04-04-2012, 08:03 AM

Jay

I can't imagine for a second that Reiss wouldn't have the tailoring done for you. I am sure they would have sent it away to be done (they use local independent tailors), so if there's a problem it will be with that tailor.

Sometimes tailors don't get it right first time, so you should ALWAYS try on a garment that has been tailored before taking it home. It was a little foolish of you not to (pot, kettle, black here as I've done it before when in a rush).

Having said that, an apology goes a long way. I totally disagree with Ben. One shop DOES represent that brand. In fact, every one in it is being PAID to represent that brand, so if one store fails, the brand fails. There's plenty of choice out there, why would I put up with crappy service?

The manager in our Reiss in Nottingham though is great, makes you feel welcome and can't do enough for you. It would make me more likely to pop into a Reiss when I was somewhere else.

The bottom line is that customer service matters.

04-04-2012, 09:55 AM

electroRoss

This is really pertinent to me right now as I've just received very poor service online from American Apparel, so much so that I will not be shopping in their stores for some time.

You work hard for your money, it should be a pleasure to spend, there are too many retailers out there to return to one with poor service. Having said that, don't cut off your nose to spite your face.

04-04-2012, 10:39 AM

Nath6644

When something goes wrong regarding service (esp with clothes), I tend to revert to being a moody, stubborn 14 year old.

Basically I stamp and shout until I get my way.

04-04-2012, 10:52 AM

Alex

I often come across bad service in stores, and I don't just think it is me expecting too much.

It particularly pisses me off if I walk into a store, which appears to have no customers, just two workers chatting to one another, and then they look at you as if you are disrupting the beautiful serenity/hipness of their shop (sorry 'boutique') just by being there! :D Sometimes independent stores are the worse for that, which is a shame, because generally I would rather spend my money in those sorts of places.

04-04-2012, 06:43 PM

merc05

I wouldn't hold it against a brand if they made a mistake or I got poor service on one occasion. For me, it would be how they responded if I were to raise this that would be important. It's not a clothing brand but still an example of excellent customer service: I recently returned some chicken to Waitrose that didn't look or smell particularly good even though it was in date. They apologised, gave me a full refund, replaced the chicken and gave me a £5 Waitrose voucher. I would have been happy with a replacement, but the fact that they went above and beyond makes me even happier to shop there than I was before.

Good customer service goes a long way. It's not great that they didn't complete the alterations that you paid for, but I would personally let them off that if they apologised and maybe offered to refund the alteration cost. Rather than asking for a full refund on the suit, it is probably worth mentioning that you weren't happy with the way they dealt with your phone call and that you had been expecting an apology. If they still aren't particularly pleasant, take your business elsewhere.

05-04-2012, 01:37 PM

_Ben_

Couldn't agree more to the above. Waitrose are actually smashing. Their customer service, support, and home service is second to none.

05-04-2012, 06:42 PM

RMKF

Well guys, part two below!

So I went back in last night, and I was all ready to be critical except in fairness they were extremely apologetic, they refunded the alteration cost (just of the one alteration that wasn't done, but still, fair enough) and they said they'd have it delivered to my office today so I didn't have to come back in.

Can you guess what happened?

Never delivered. I phoned now to ask why and got the same ultra-rude guy as on Tuesday night, who basically said "yeah we can deliver it to your house tomorrow, or you can come in and yeah if you want, get a refund."

No explanation of why it wasn't delivered. Fact is, being a bank holiday I can't be hanging around the house tomorrow waiting for it.

I sort of feel like asking for the manager tomorrow in person, though to be honest am just thinking about getting my money back.

I know that might have seemed harsh initially but I really gave them the benefit of the doubt last night.